1 Corinthians 11:23-26 – The Purpose of the Lord’s Supper

In verse 2 Paul praised them for holding firm to the tradition that he had taught them. But from verses 17-22, he highlighted one thing he could not praise them for. That one thing was their failure to keep proper observation of the tradition of the Lord’s Supper. When they celebrated the communion with so much faction, they had violated the very purpose of the Lord’s Supper. Christ’s body was broken to bring unity to His body, the believers. This purpose was violated when the communion was celebrated with so much division. So to remind them of the purpose of the Lord’s death he appealed to the tradition itself, as he had received from the Lord and would now passed it on to them.

The Lord’s Supper is an extension of the Last Supper which the Lord shared with His disciples. In that supper, the bread and wine were interpreted as Christ’s body and blood that would soon be given on the cross. There was also a reminder of Judas, the betrayer. The whole purpose of mentioning the act of betrayal was to show that although Christ was killed by the Romans, it was one of His own who had handed Him over. It was a touching way of showing that at the table of the Lord, there was genuine forgiveness.

 

Referring to Christ’s statement at the Supper, “This is my body which is [broken] for you...,” Paul was highlighting that Christ died for all of them as a body. It was not just a death for individual members. Therefore as a body they should remember that Christ did it for them corporately and be united. The cup was to remind believers that as a body, they were Christ’s new covenant people. He died for them all. So the eating of the bread and drinking of the wine were for them to remember Him. It was a call for eyes and minds to be fixed on the crucifixion.

Every time the Lord’s Supper is celebrated, the Lord’s death is proclaimed. This is not a recounting of His death but a recalling of the purpose of His death. The purpose of His death was to reconcile us to the Father and to one another. Christ’s death should bring about unity and not division, reconciliation and not alienation. This implied that for the Corinthians to bring disrepute to the Lord’s Supper with so much faction was pure sacrilege.

The final phrase “…until He comes” is a call to anticipate His coming again. We must surely remember that at the hill side of Bethany where Christ ascended, the angels announced confidently, “This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven.” (Acts 1:11).

Reconciliation was a key purpose of Christ’s death. He is still turning the hearts of us all to one another and he is still turning the hearts of us all to the Lord. So be kind to one another, tender hearted, forgiving one another. As God in Christ has forgiven us.